Ite Shitoyaka
Ite Shitoyaka (射手淑やか, Lit. Graceful Archer) was a kunoichi hailing from Higakure, then Kumogakure prior and during the days of the First Raikage. Renowned for her mastery of archery at a young age, she had been a tide turner in many different confrontations against enemy forces and one of the warriors who pushed Kumogakure to its ascension to the village it is today. Orphaned at a young age, she was taught in the ways of archery by the village's archery trainer the day she was old enough to pull the string on a bow, she had dedicated herself to the art of ancient archery and had learned many long lost forms of the style. She trained herself constantly, leaving no room for error in her attacks. She always fired true, never missing unless she intends to. Background Ite was born in Kumogakure during the early days of the village, when it was still known as Higakure, twenty six years before the unifications done by the First Kage Council. When she was three, her parents were killed by a group of bandits from Hotarugakure while she was sleeping, which ended up sparking yet another war, this one the longest, between the two major villages of the Land of Lightning. She found herself running out of the house the next day after she saw them not breathing and crying out in the middle of the village. It was the village archer who heard her crying and had asked her what was wrong. She told him her parents weren't breathing and wouldn't wake up. Realizing the worst had come to pass for her, he took her in and raised her while also telling her of what happened to them. Giving her some time to cope with her losses, he gave her something to eat to help lift her spirits up. The teacher knew what it was like to lose parents, as he was exposed to the same events. After a few days, she was finally calmed down, which helped let the teacher begin raising her. Stumbling into the training room, Ite picked up a bow and tried pulling on the string, but wasn't strong enough. Looking down at the young girl, the trainer let out a smile and told her he'd train her on how to use that bow. Letting out a smile, Ite nodded and placed the bow back on its stand. As time went by, the trainer taught her the basics to start with when she was six, finally being strong enough to pull on the string. He also got her enrolled into Higakure's academy. Her basic training went on until she was ten, when she graduated from the academy. Noting how quickly she had learned, the teacher began teaching her the advanced methods, such as using the bow in both her right and left hand. Ite trained herself in every form of archery, especially in the ancient arts. She took her skills into the ancient evolution exams when she was thirteen, using mock arrows in the elimination exams. She was found to be virtually untouchable by the opposition, using her combination of archery proficiency and her mild skills in Lightning Release her team's sensei taught her. Even the Kumouja, the ruler of Higakure, saw how interesting her skills were. Using an orthodox style with unorthodox methods had caught the Kumouja's eye. When she turned fifteen, she was officially promoted to the ancient equivalent of Chunin and from there, her archery teacher and adoptive father had taught her everything he knew. From there, she trained herself in archery abilities not even her teacher knew, earning his everlasting respect. When she turned nineteen, she was finally at the peak of her abilities, a master of the bow. Ite would prove to be one of the great warriors who helped expand Higakure into the village of glory it became today. Kumogakure once consisted of two villages; Higakure, the village hidden within the clouds, and Hotarugakure, the village hidden within the lightning. Each of these villages strived to absorb the other and waged war for decades, each of them coming to a standstill. Thanks to the beginning efforts of Ite, Higakure began its final push into absorbing Hotarugakure into the main village. She would be twenty five years old when the First Kage Meeting took place, seeing Higakure being formed into Kumogakure and the election of the Kumouja's son as the First Raikage. She died twenty years later after giving birth to a daughter, having died protecting Kumogakure from an insurgence of former Hotarugakure soldiers. Legacy Ite proved to be an inspiration for not just Higakure, but the newly formed Kumogakure as well. Her push against Hotarugakure's forces in the last war provided the inspiration Higakure needed to push back against the enemy and defeat them once and for all. Her bravery earned her the position of honorary guard of the First Raikage, who she protected from many insurgents wishing to try and revive Hotarugakure. She would protect both the first and second Raikage until her death after one last rebellion from Hotarugakure's sons. Their modernized knowledge proved to be the breaking point to stop Ite's ancient archery skills. Regardless, she was able to stop their rebellion with her last breath. Bleeding and dying, she pushed them back with everything she had until she breathed her last breath. She was buried within Kumogakure's newly formed Chamber of Heroes, built as a tomb to honor great heroes like Ite who gave their lives protecting the village they loved. Her daughter would continue the Shitoyaka heritage of bravery, and her family would eventually split down the tree until one member of the long faded Shitoyaka line gave birth to Darui, who would become the fifth Raikage. Though her teachings of archery have been long lost to history, her original texts lay within the Kage's quarters, locked up until the day they'll once again be needed. Appearance Ite beared a modest appearance, one befitting a feudal archer. She had a fairly slim, but fit physique and was of average height. She had light brown hair tied into an asymmetrical ponytail on her left side to keep her hair from obstructing her vision. Her eyes beared a striking shade of brown, almost shining gold in the light. Below the neck, she wore a purple kimono that rests above the legs for ease of mobility. The kimono had a white sash with holes in them where she kept her arrows. This kept her from being burdening down by a quiver, which can prove to be an inhibitor in densely forested areas. She carried a simple bow made of oak and has strips of cloth on the center for ease of carry. Personality Ite was a very optimistic person, having inherited her personality from her teacher and adoptive father. Having moved on after learning about the deaths of her parents, she hoped one day the bandits responsible are brought to swift justice, which she eventually saw. She was introverted, keeping to herself most of the time but wasn't afraid to converse with others in she founds the topic they're talking about to be interesting. She was very studious. She was almost always found with a book in her hand if she wasn't on a mission or working on improving her archery. Ite had very big aspirations, hoping to one day become a respected hero, taking inspiration from the great heroes of Higakure's long history, striving to one day be among those heroes. She beared a kind heart and an equally kind soul, helping those in need whenever she can. Abilities Having been trained at a young age in the art of the bow, Ite possessed extraordinary skills with archery. She had trained herself in the ancient form of the art, training herself to be able to hit targets no matter what she's doing; From running, to jumping, to even hitting enemies in close range, very few things were impossible for her and her bow. When combined with her Lightning Release, her archery earned her the moniker Tenkeiya, (天炯矢, Lit. Heaven's Piercing Arrow). Kyūjutsu Kyūjutsu was Ite's signature method of combat. Having trained all her life in the art, she had picked up ancient, long lost forms of archery that have kept her on her toes at all times. She could fire her bow incredibly fast, keeping her arrows in her draw hand. She could alternate between using her left hand and right hand to take out targets in unorthodox positions. She had trained her reflexes to such a point that she could catch an arrow in mid-air and fire it back at her target. She was even been able to perform this feat while she herself was in the air. She could make use of arrows on the battleground and use them against her targets with quick and precise execution. She had trained herself to hit her target no matter how fast her or her target may be moving. Her eyes were constantly moving to scan her surroundings, making sure no target is out of the view of her and her bow. These skills alone were more than enough to get her through the ancient Evolution exams purely because of the fact she's one of the most unorthodox archers around, one who never stayed in one place and could almost always hit her mark while on the move. Her firing speed was another thing worthy of note; She could fire ten arrows in less than four seconds, having trained on her speed constantly enough to build a perfect pattern. Whether through suppressive fire or unbridled accuracy, her speed was enough to keep her opponents held back. Ite utilized various forms of arrows to better suit her combat methods. Some of them were not intended to go through the skin, but rather deliver harsh, blunt damage. By using a specialized arrow head with small points on it, the arrow was meant to hit nerve points in the body to shut them down. Just one nerve point was more than enough to render her targets unconscious and with her sharp vision, it wasn't hard for her to deliver a quick, accurate shot towards a nerve point. By utilizing the wind, Ite could use it to create unique methods of hitting her targets. If the wind was particularly strong, she fired against the wind to help improve its flight proficiency, allowing it to hit its target much quicker and at a greater distance. By using the wind as a lateral guide, Ite could use the wind to curve her arrow's path, allowing her to hit targets in awkward positions. By utilizing her acrobatic skills, she could evade other attacks and as just as fast as she dodged the attack, she could deliver a counter attack with one of her arrows. If she found things out of her bow's abilities, she could wound her targets just long enough to make a quick escape and use her skills in stealth to remain sufficiently hidden. Nature Manipulation Ite possessed a decent form of nature manipulation in her Lightning Release. Having been trained by her team's sensei on how to utilize her Lightning Release, she opted to use it to improve her skills in archery. By imbuing her arrows with lightning energy, she could allow them to travel at incredible speeds, enough to even break the sound barrier. The lightning around the arrow doubled as a shield, ensuring the arrow doesn't fall apart under these incredible speeds. She had also learned how to use it on herself to improve her firing speed. By imbuing her draw hand with lightning energy, she could double her firing speed, launching a blinding volley of arrows at an incredible pace. By altering the flow of lightning energy, Ite could alter the flow to be more refined at the point of the arrowhead, increasing its penetration, even allowing it to go through wood without stopping. With enough lightning energy, she cpuld allow the arrow to partially go through steel, but not enough where the arrow was able to keep moving, usually stopping once the arrowhead goes through the wall. Sharp Vision The biggest attribution to Ite's extraordinary archery skills and accuracy as her sharp eyesight. Possessing 20/08 vision, she could see something from twenty feet away with the same visual acuity of someone seeing the same object from eight feet. This sharp vision allowed her to see farther away targets much more clearly, allowing her to take out long distance targets easily. This also allowed her to view over her surroundings with much sharper visual ability, allowing her to more quickly get the lay of the land. Though some say she had the eyes of a hawk, she knew this was not true, but it wasn't extremely far off a comparison to her vision.